Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies, Gluten-Free

Hey there, darlin! I see you're new here. Check out my weekly newsletter, where I send out free recipes and give away cookbooks and fun kitchen gadgets. Plus! You'll get your free copy of my new cooking e-book, Sad to Fab: 5 foods to get you feeling great. Five super simple recipes that will put more bounce in your step. Welcome! It's so good to have you here.

- Gluten-free chocolate chip peanut butter cookies never had it so good. -

Some time back I was playing with a gluten-free peanut butter cookie recipe that I’d developed over the years. I was happy with it, but I can’t help but get annoyed by the mixing of flours and the occasionally interjecting flavors of the standard array of gluten-free flours. There are some very good mixes on the market – and I’ve got a good recipe here, on my own site – but still, I often ache for gluten-free recipes that don’t require a lot of fuss. Then a few months ago, someone passed along an almond butter cookie recipe from Food52. It contained no flour at all. Normally I may be skeptical, but every recipe I’ve ever tried from Food52 has been rock-solid. And this recipe took literally 5-minutes to put together, so I figured what the hell? I gave it a try, swapping out the almond butter for peanut butter, adjusting a few other measurements, and adding a pinch of sea salt to the top of the cookies just before baking. The results were, in a word, perfect. Baked just until the edges of the cookies turn a more golden color, these little beauties are crispy at the edge and tender in the middle. The peanut butter flavor is, like, KAPOW! While the chopped bittersweet chocolate lends a wink of darkness, with brown sugar providing a butterscotch-y smooch at the end. These gluten-free peanut butter cookies are insanely easy to put together. If you like, you can make the ahead of time and store the dough the fridge, rolled tightly into a log and sealed with plastic wrap – it should be good for up to three days, but beyond that the dough will likely dry out. The cookies are a little fragile when fresh out of the oven, so allow them to cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheet before gently lifting them off to a cooling rack. I love it when gluten-free recipes are entirely devoid of standard flour replacements. These babies are all natural, without a hint of annoying “analog-ness.” Yay for that!

These gluten-free peanut butter cookies are, in a word, perfect. The peanut butter flavor is full of KAPOW! Chopped bittersweet chocolate lends a wink of darkness, while a hint of brown sugar provides a butterscotch-y smooch at the end. And, they are insanely easy to put together.

Preheat oven to 350°F (176°C). Set the oven rack to the middle of the oven.

Line a baking sheet with parchment or a Silpat.

In a mixing bowl, mix together the peanut butter, white sugar, and brown sugar. Beat in the egg, vanilla, baking soda, and salt until well combined. Stir in the chopped chocolate.

Portion cookies into tablespoon-sized balls and drop them onto prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle each cookie with a small pinch of flakey sea salt using your fingers to break up the flakes as you sprinkle. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or just until the edges of the cookies turn gently brown. Allow to cool and firm up on the baking sheet for at least 10 minutes before moving to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Notes

You can make these cookies ahead of time: prepare everything and store the dough the fridge, rolled tightly into a log and sealed with plastic wrap. It should be good for up to three days.

The cookies are a little fragile when they're hot, so let them cool on the baking sheet for at least 10 minutes before gently moving them to a cooling rack.

Hungry for more?

Comments

Wow, Stephanie!! These sound wonderful! Quick, easy, and we always have all those ingredients in the cabinet or pantry! Thanks!

I may have to make these, tonight, and I have some cashew butter that I might try. Do you think it would substitute well? My younger son, 20 months, has a peanut allergy. But I could definitely pick up some almond butter, as well!

I’m going to send a link to this to my mother. She has major problems with gluten and loves cookies, but doesn’t eat them that much because of it as she gets deathly ill if she eats the wrong thing. She’ll love these. Thanks

Notify me of followup comments via e-mail. You can also subscribe without commenting.

Hi, I'm Steph. Stephanie Stiavetti. I have three primary goals in life: to teach you how to cook, to improve your health alongside your relationship with food, to make sure you enjoy your time in kitchen. Why? Because people who love what they eat live happier, healthier lives.
I just released a new cookbook, with 75 fresh recipes for cooking with cheese and pasta. I also write for NPR, Serious Eats, The Huffington Post, and KQED. Learn more.